Vehicle.



C. P. LNDES.

VEHICLE.

APPucAlon man una. 1. me.

mgm@ 1917.

des

nfr N eras ramena cierren.

y e CHARLES P. LANDES, or CHICAGO, iLLrivois.

VEHICLE.

readies.

. Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented'certainnew and useful Improvementsin Vehicles, of which the Afollowing is a specification. g This invention relates to a vehicle adapted particularly for military purposes, being designed with special reference to the trans- `portation of a large body of men at one time..

Invmodern warfare mobilityis recognized to be of prime importance. Various means Aare now employed to transport troops from -`one point to another, such, for instance, as

railroad trains and automobiles. Transpon tation via railroadis limited of course to only those points served by the line. Ve-

,hicles thattravel uponV the highways, while operable over any passable road, are never-` theless so limited injcarrying capacity las tc provide insuflicient mobile service. Bearing in mind the great necessity for speedy transportation of la'rgebodies of men to any de-A sired point, I have devised alvehicle, preferably motor-driven, which overcomes the deficiencies'inherentA in other means of transportation now used. It is a primary object of my invention, therefore, to provide a vehicle having a large carrying capacity, and which is simple and comparatively inexpensive to construct.y It isalso an object to so construct the vehicle as to render easy and` speedy mounting and dismounting of troops, to the end that there may be no unnecessary delays. My invention also contemplates other objects and uses, as will more fully hereinafter appear. y

In the accompanying drawing which illustrates one embodiment of my invention- Figure 1 is a plan view of the vehicle;

Fig. 2 is a cross sectional view on line 2-2 of Fig. l;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary side elevation of one of the supports for the riding rails; and

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary side elevation of a modified form of riding rail.

In the vehicle construction exhibited, I utilize a motor vehicle having the chassis 5 supported upon wheelsand axles 6 and 7 re spectively. The vehicle is generally elongated in form, with the length considerably Patented lDee. d, 1917..

App1icaton ledMarch 7, 1916. Serial No. 82,567.

ing located conveniently thereto. The motor is situated within a housing 10, which, in the construction shown, extends partially beneath the drivers seat. At the rear end of the vehicle, another operating` scat 11 is located in proximity to a steering wheel 12 forthe rear wheels (not shown). Thepurpose of this rear steering device, of course, is to facilitate 4turning' of thevvehicle around sharp corners, an expedient which is commonly used in especially long vehicles.

Arranged upon the chassis of the vehicle and preferably extending from end to end thereof, are series of foot rails 13, spaced from each other a suitable distance apart.

.platefthe use of suitable links 18, or any other equivalent means. Strips of canvas or other flexible material 19 may be buttoned in place between the foot and riding rails, iii the manner shown in Fig. 2. Obviously such covering material should be detachably secured in place, as otherwise the riding rails would not be capable of swinging outwardly in the manner illustrated. In Fig. 3 I have shown an opening 2O in one of the outside foot rails 13 at the points where the supporting posts 17 are situated. This is to enable the posts to swing below the rail, so that the riding rail may be brought to the lowesty possible elevation.

In Fig. t I have shown a modified construction of the supporting posts for the outer riding rails. In this figure the posts 21 are arranged to swing in a direction longitudinally of the vehicle as distinguished from the laterally swinging posts shown in Fig. 2. `The riding rails `when lowered would occupy positions similar to that indicated by the dotted lines in Fig. il.

It will be readily understood from the foregoing description how the vehicle of my invention is intended to be used. At the time troops are to be transported, the outer riding rails are first lowered to remove obstruction for those mounting the center riding rail. The outer riding rails are thereafter raised and locked in position tolbe available for use. Each man will straddle -one riding rail with his feet upon the adj av cent foot rails. This enables a large number of men to bc safely carried one behind the other on the vehicle to any desired destination reached bypassable highways. At the time of disniounting, the outside riding rails may be lowered to enable those on the central riding rail to lea-ve the vehicle with greater despatch.

It will be observed that in the construction which I have provided, a large number of troops can be seated upon a comparatively small vehicle body. Ihe construction of the `vehicle is both simple, and possessed of ample strength. Ventilation between the riding rails is provided in the open construction between the foot rails. rI`he canvas strips may be buttoned in place when desired to protect the troops from mud or dust which may be encountered on the road. Other attachments, if desired, such as a canopy, may also be provided. Such additions to the construction which I have shown are entirely obvious, and may be used as circumstances permit. It is manifest also that other equivalent means for lowering and aising the riding rails may be substituted for those which I have shown, but such modifications are comprehended within t-he scope of myl invention.

I claim:

l. In combination with a vehicle chassis, riding rails arranged in courses upon the chassis and spaced apart for each to be straddled, and foot rails on each side of each riding rail, the spaces between the foot rails being open, substantially as described.

2. In combination with a vehicle chassis, riding` rails arranged in courses upon the c hassis and spaced apart for each to be straddled, foot rails on each'side of each riding rail, the spaces betweenthe foot rails beingopen, rand means for lowering the outermost of the riding rails, substantially as described. i Y

3. In a vehicle of the kind described, the combination with a chassis of straddling seats mounted directly on the chassis arranged in courses thereupon with the seats suit-ably elevated and spaced apart, and foot rails mounted directly on the chassis on each side of the straddling seats and at a distance therebelow, substantially as described.

fl. In a'vehicle of the kind described, the

combination with a chassis of straddling seats mounted directly on the chassis arranged in courses thereupon with the seats suitably elevated and spaced apart, and foot rails mounted directly on the chassis on each side of the straddling seats and at a distance therebelow, the spaces between the foot rails being open, substantially as described.

5. In a vehicle of the kind described, the combination with a chassis of straddling seats arranged in courses upon the chassis, toot rails on the chassison either side of the straddling seats, and `supports for the seats mounted directly on the chassis and'adapted to lower the seats when desired, substantially as described.

cHAnLEs n LANDES. W'itnesses FRANCES M. FROST, EPI-manu BANNI'NG.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. l 

